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Internet Scam! Letters Lead to Losses
By Steve William Sanson

Have you ever turned on your computer and received an e-mail from a supposed foreign citizen asking you to help him with a financial transaction? I’ve included detailed samples of some of the scam e-mails often called Nigerian Letters, but they can come from any country. These are not new, but they are still working when recipients don’t know about the risks.

These scammers are out for your pocketbook and they would do and say whatever it takes to have you send them money or fly to a destination then rip you off.

Most of these e-mail come out of one of many African countries. These scammers are con artists looking for someone that can be easily manipulated, and, believe me, there are many people that fall for this scam.

The crooks are known to send many e-mails and talk directly to the target for hours to gain trust. Be aware of these scams, and do not respond however tempting the prospects may sound.
Surprisingly, many of these e-mails find unsuspecting allies from all walks of life, including middle-class professionals and the somewhat financially well-off. The poor are usual victims for scams like this and many other types of schemes, but no groups are immune, unless people just say no and delete the offending e-mails.

Here are two examples for you to study the writing style and the types of empty promises made. Note the frequent errors in spelling and sentence structure. The names included are just for illustration; any person’s name or bank name might be used in this scam.

If you or someone you know receives this type of fraudulent e-mail, report it and any other online fraud at www.sec.gov/investor/pubs/cyberfraud.htm


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Fraud e-mail sample #1
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Attn: Sir/Madam,

It is with trust and believes that I write to you, all though I don’t know you neither have I seen you before, but my confidence was reposed on you. My name is MR JEFFREY ABRAHAM a personal Attorney to Mr. Hasan Farouk, and a National of your Country. He was also a Contractor with one of the Government Prostates, who executed a contract with the AJAKOTA STEEL DEVELOPMENT COMPANY here in Nigeria.

Unfortunately on January 31, 2000 my client unfortunately lost his life in the plane crash of Alaska Airlines Flight 261.Alongside 87 other passengers when the plane, heading to San Francisco and Seattle from Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, crashed into the Pacific Ocean not far from Los Angeles. You may read more about the crash on visiting this website [NOTE: the scammers will give a website of real event, such as a plane crash, or they fake a website] and uptill today we have been expecting his next of kin or relatives to come over so that we apply claim for this money. I as his lawyer have made several enquiries to locate any of my client s extended relatives, this has also proved unsuccessful, as he has no wife and the bank cannot release it unless somebody applies for it as next of kin.

After these several unsuccessful attempts, I decided to contact you to help me and claim this money valued at US$35 Million as the next of kin of my late client before it gets confiscated or declared unserviceable by the bank.

Moreover, I will provide all necessary information/documents for the claim. All I require from you is your honest cooperation to enable us see this transaction through.

I guarantee you that this will be executed under legitimate arrangement that will protect you from any breach of the law. Your response is only what I am waiting for, as I have put all machineries/modalities that will be instrumental to the success of the transaction in motion. Also I would be grateful if this mail will be favored with an earlier reply. All I need from you is to furnish me with your contact information such as your full name and address, Direct Phone and Fax Number For easy communication.

However, I am compensating you with 50% of the total amount, now all my hope is banked on you and I really wants to invest this money in your country, were there is stability of Government, political and economic welfare.

NOTE: I know there may be scams and junk mails flying here and there on the Internet but certainly; this is not one of them. Now I urge you to take this message serious and with an open mind, with good faith and trust. I guarantee you that this will be executed under a legitimate arrangement that will protect you from any breach of the law.

I shall be waiting for your urgent respond on this as soon as possible. I honestly assure you that this transaction is 100% risk free. Please do not fail to contact me through my email address:

barristerjeffreyabraham2001@yahoo.es
I look forward to your urgent response.

Yours Sincerely,
MR JEFFREY ABRAHAM


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Fraud e-mail sample #2
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Good day!!

I can’t imagine how you will feel receiving a sudden business letter from a remote country in far away South Africa and probably from someone you have not closely related with. But all the same, I believe we do not need to be of blood relatives before we can establish cordial/business relationship. Having said this, I think it is very important at this juncture to introduce myself to you and also disclose to you, how I came in contact with your email address/profile. My name is. Thandi Khumalo I am the district (Foreign Operations) manager of Commercial Bank here in South Africa.

I got your email address/profile from the Internet when I was in search for reliable and competent person to handle this matter for our future benefits. So it is my pleasure to solicit your assistance in a very confidential business proposal. I am contacting you because I do not want to transact the business with anybody who is known to any staff of this bank or anybody around here to avoid any possible blackmail or leakage at the end of the transaction.

HERE IS THE PROPOSAL:

There is an account in this bank, which was opened in 1982 by one Mr. Marc Angers, an Australian National, who worked with South Africa Department of Mining & Natural Resources and since 1990 nobody has operated on this account. I had a very careful study of the account files through which I carried an extensive investigation about the holder of the said account and found out that Mr. Marc Angers suddenly died in a plane crash in 1990 thereby abandoning the account, having been fictitious regards the information submitted to this bank at the time of opening the account.

The account at this moment has no beneficiary since the name Mr. Marc filled, as his next of kin has no contact information in the form he submitted to the bank. I have secretly removed all the relevant files to the account from the dormant section so that bank auditors will not verify the abandoned money and refer it to Federal Treasury via South Africa reserve bank. Credit balance of the said account is US$9 Million (Nine million, United States Dollars).
My Dear Friend, the deal here is that the money in this account will be approved and remitted to any foreigner who shows up as next of kin to Mr. Marc provided such person has correct information to the account.

I have such needed information and will hand it over to you as soon as we commence the transaction. I will source all necessary documents and forward them to you for direct submission to the bank. With my position as the foreign operations manager, we will quietly remove this money from the bank without hitches.
I don’t have any problem in regularizing all necessary documents and transferring of the credit balance of the said account to your yet to nominated overseas bank account, but the problem is sincerity and trust.

I have spent months in trying to get an overseas reliable contact. It is worthy to note that people are unreliable these days and even derive joy in telling lies.

On this ground I request your unreserved but sincere cooperation devoid of greed in carrying out this transaction so that no one amongst both of us shall defraud each other at the end.
I am prepared to split the fund at 60%-40% for you, provided that mine (60%) will be intact at the end. Please get back to me via the above email account as a matter of urgency or call +0027731358128.

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Remember: If it sounds too good to be true or if your instincts lead you to doubt an e-mail, trust your feelings and check it out with the authorities before you get taken. The scammers prey on greed, desperation and compassion. Don’t be a victim.

E-mail: SteveWSanson@cs.com or phone (702) 283-8088
Website: www.VeteransInPolitics.com.